INDIGENOUS CHILD MORBIDITY PREVENTION TECHNIQUES IN THE IBADAN METROPOLITAN AREA, NIGERIA

Abstract

The high cost of allopathic medical health care and the expensive pharmaceutical products have underlined the importance of African Traditional Medicine (ATM), the use of which is limited by its oral dissemination tradition. Its documentation as obtainable in other climes will be a great stride at sustainably curbing illnesses in the continent. This depends on collation of original data from the traditional custodians of such knowledge. In Nigeria, communicable diseases, immunisable childhood infections and malnutrition have been submitted as the main sources of child mortality. This paper, therefore, reports the traditional means of curbing infant morbidity by traditional infant healers in Ibadan metropolis, Nigeria. The study was conducted in Bode market, Ibadan; the herbal market headquarters in Nigeria using primary and secondary information sources. Snowball technique was used in the selection of the twenty (20) infant healers (Elewe omo/Aremo) for sampling. The test instrument was a set of open-ended questionnaires divided into three parts. Section A captured information on Respondents’ bio- data, section B focused on other background information while section C probed into plants and parts used in the treatment of infant morbidity as well as dosage and usage of traditional infant healing recipes. Data garnered were analysed using descriptive statistics (frequency, range, mean, percentage and histogram). Eighty-nine local plants, identified with their botanical names and families were documented alongside their medicinal use(s) in the treatment of infant morbidity. Information on some recipes, dosages and application period was also documented with their preparation as well as parts of plant used. Although, there will still be the need for researchers to explore other vital information for scientific validation of the infant healers’ claims, the study lays a sustainable foundation towards documentation of indigenous techniques for infant morbidity prevention in the study area.